MELBOURNE, Australia - Marylandian -- SecurePII, a cloud-native PCI compliance and data privacy platform, today announced it has raised USD 3.5 million (A$5 million) in Seed funding led by Tidal Ventures. The funding will support SecurePII's global expansion and advance its mission to help businesses securely capture and anonymize sensitive information in real time across voice channels.

Founders with Deep Expertise
SecurePII was founded by technology entrepreneurs Jason Thals, Haydn Faltyn, and Bill Placke, who bring decades of experience in cloud communications, data compliance, and large-scale software delivery. Their previous work produced award-winning solutions for the telecommunications industry. With SecurePII, they are tackling one of the most pressing challenges of the AI era: protecting personal data in voice interactions while enabling businesses to harness AI responsibly.

More on Marylandian

• Maryland's Wizard's Escape Becomes a Top Choice for Large Families & Celebration Groups
• From Cheer to Courtroom: The Hidden Legal Risks in Your Holiday Eggnog
• Maryland: Winter Ban on Spreading Manure, FPRs and Other Nutrient Sources Begins December 16
• Controversial Vegan Turns Rapper Launches First Song, "Psychopathic Tendencies."
• Inside the Fight for Affordable Housing: Avery Headley Joins Terran Lamp for a Candid Bronx Leadership Conversation

Closing the Compliance Gap in AI
The funding will scale sales and enablement teams and accelerate product innovation, including AI-powered selective redaction technology. This allows organizations to safely use voice data for AI and analytics while minimizing regulatory risk and aligning with NIST Data Minimization principles, closing a critical gap in Payments and AI.

The new Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS 4.0), effective March 2025, introduces stricter requirements for handling sensitive payment data. Organizations storing call recordings with cardholder information risk penalties, higher transaction fees, or losing the ability to process payments.

"Reading credit card or personal information aloud over the phone has long been one of the last unguarded risks," said Bill Placke, President, Americas at SecurePII. "SecurePII not only makes voice payments PCI-compliant, it also enables organizations to safely unlock the value of voice data for AI and analytics."

Compliance Without Complexity

More on Marylandian

• Canterbury Hotel Group Announces the Opening of the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Portland Airport
• Heritage at South Brunswick's Resort-Style Amenities for Any Age and Every Lifestyle
• T-TECH Partners with Japan USA Precision Tools for 2026 US Market Development of the New T-TECH 5-Axis QUICK MILL™
• Record Revenues, Debt-Free Momentum & Shareholder Dividend Ignite Investor Attention Ahead of 2026–2027 Growth Targets: IQSTEL (N A S D A Q: IQST)
• New YouTube Channel Pair Launches to Bring Entertainment Nostalgia Back to Life

SecurePII's flagship product, SecureCall, redacts sensitive information the moment it is entered, without rerouting calls, interrupting conversations, or storing audio. Integrating into VoIP platforms and payment gateways, SecureCall lets teams serve customers while minimizing compliance exposure.

Investor Conviction and Next Steps
The round was led by Tidal Ventures, an early-stage investor focused on AI-native B2B software. "Voice is one of the last unprotected frontiers in payments," said Tidal Ventures Managing Partner Wendell Keuneman. SecurePII will use the funding to accelerate product development, expand its partner ecosystem, and grow US sales and enablement teams, with plans to extend into additional regulatory frameworks and AI-driven privacy middleware.

About Tidal Ventures
Founded in 2016, Tidal Ventures is an Australian-US venture capital firm backing early-stage AI-native B2B SaaS companies. With deep operating experience, Tidal works closely with founders to scale transformative technologies globally.